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WAR BRIDES 



WAR BRIDES 

A Play in One Act 



BY 



MARION GRAIG WENTWORTH 



ILLUSTRATED WITH PHOTOGRAPHS FROM THE 
PLAY AS PRESENTED BY MME. NAZIMOVA 




?**}f&£« 



NEW YORK 

THE CENTURY CO. 

1915 






7 * 3 Mtf3 






Copyright, 1915, by 
The Century Co. 



Acting rights controlled by 

DRAMATIST'S PLAY AGENCY, 

145 West 45th Street, 

New York City 



Published, February 1915 



FEB 26 1915 



TO 

MY LITTLE BOY 

BRANDON 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 

Good-by ! good-by ! Frontispiece 

FACING 
PAGE 

Arno: You are wanted 42 

Hedwig: Franz? 1 

. 6 \ 62 , 

Amelia : Franz, too J 

Amelia : No, you must not ! You have too 

much to live for 66 



This play was first produced 
on January 25, 1915, at 

B. F. KEITH'S PALACE THEATRE, 

NEW YORK CITY, 

with the following cast: 

Hedwig (Joan) Mme. Nazimova 

Amelia (Amy) Mary Alden 

Mother Gertrude Berkeley 

Hoffman (Joseph Kerman) Charles Bryant 

Minna Edith Speare 

Arno C. Brown 

Hertz (Captain Bragg) William Hasson 

Peasants, Women and Soldiers. 

Time — Present. Places — A War-Ridden Country. 

Personal Manager for Madame Nazimova 
William F. Muenster 



WAR BRIDES 



WAR BRIDES 

The war brides were cheered with enthusiasm and the 
churches were crowded when the wedding parties spoke 
the ceremony in concert. — Press Clipping. 

Scene : A room in a peasant's cottage in a war- 
ridden country. A large fireplace at the 
right. Near it a high-backed settle. On 
the left a heavy oak table and benches. 
Woven ?nats on the floor. A door at left 
leads into a bedroom. In the corner a cup- 
board. At the back a wide window with 
scarlet geraniums and an open door. A few 
firearms are stacked near the fireplace. 
There is an air of homely color and neatness 
about the room. 

Through the open door may be seen women 

3 



WAR BRIDES 

stacking grain. Others go by carrying huge 
baskets of grapes or loads of wood, and grad- 
ually it penetrates the mind that all these 
workers are women, aristocrats and peasants 
side by side. Now and then a bugle blows 
or a drum beats in the distance. A squad of 
soldiers tnarches quickly by. There is every- 
where the tense at?nosphere of unusual cir- 
cumstance, the anxiety and excitement of 
war. 

Amelia, a slight, flaxen-haired girl of nine- 
teen, comes in. She brushes off the hay with 
which she is covered, and goes to packing a 
bag with a secret, but determined, air. The 
Mother passes the window and appears in the 
doorway. She is old and work-worn, but 
sturdy a?zd stoical. Now she carries a heavy 
load of wood, and is weary. She casts a 
sharp eye at Amelia. 



WAR BRIDES 5 

Mother: 
What are you doing, girl? [Amelia starts and 
puts the bag in the cupboard. \ Who's going 
away? They have n't sent for Arno? 

Amelia: 
No. 

Mother: 
[Sighs, and drops her load on the hearth.] 
Is the hay all in? 

Amelia: 

Yes. I put in the last load. All the big work 

on our place is done, and so — [Looks at her 

mother and hesitates. Her mother begins to 

chop the wood into kindling.] I'll do that, 

Mother. 

Mother: 

Let be, girl. It keeps me from worrying. Get 

a bite to eat. What were you doing with that 

bag? Who were you packing it for? 



6 WAR BRIDES 

Amelia: 

[ With downcast eyes. ] 
Myself. 

Mother: [Anxious.] 

What for? 

Amelia: 
Sit down, Mother, and be still while I tell 
you — 
[Pushes her mother into a chair.] 

Mother: [Starts.] 

Is there any news? Quick! Tell me! 

Amelia: 
Not since yesterday. Only they say Franz is 
at the front. We don't know where Emil and 
Otto are, and there 's been a battle ; but — 

Mother: 
[Murmurs, with closed eyes.] 
My boys ! my boys ! 



WAR BRIDES 7 

Amelia: 
Don't, Mother! They may come back. 
[A cheer is heard.] 

Mother: [Starting.] ' 

What's that? 

Amelia: 
[Running to the door and looking out.] 
They are cheering the war brides, that 's all. 

Mother: 
Aye. There 's been another wedding ceremony. 

Amelia: 

Yes. 

Mother: 
How many war brides to-day^ 

Amelia: 
Ten, they said. 



8 WAR BRIDES 

Mother: [Nodding.] 

Aye, that is good. Has any one asked you, 
Amelia? [Amelia looks embarrassed.] Some 
one should ask you. You are a good-looking 
girl. 

Amelia: [In a low voice.] 
Hans Hoffman asked me last night. 

Mother: 
The young and handsome lieutenant? You 
are lucky. You said yes? 

Amelia: [Shakes her head.] 
No. 

Mother: 
Ah, well. 

Amelia: 
I hardly know him. I've only spoken to him 
once before. O Mother — that is n't what I 
want to do. 



WAR BRIDES 9 

Mother: 
What did you tell him*? 

A melia : [ Timidly. ] 

That I was going away to join the Red Cross. 

Mother: 

Amelia ! 

Amelia: 

He didn't believe me. He kissed me — and I 
ran away. 

Mother: 
The Red Cross! 

A m elia : [ Eagerly. ] 

Yes; that is what I was going to tell you just 
now. That is why I was packing the bag. 
[Gets it.] I — I want to go. I want to go 
to-night. I can't stand this waiting. 

Mother: 
You leave me, too^ 



io WAR BRIDES 

Amelia: 
I want to go to the front with Franz and Otto 
and Emil, to nurse them, to take care of them 
if they are wounded — and all the others. Let 
me, Mother! I, too, must do something for 
my country. The grapes are plucked, and 
the hay is stacked. Hedwig is gathering the 
wheat. You can spare me. I have been 
dreaming of it night and day. 

Mother: 

[Setting her lips decisively.] 

No, Amelia! 

Atnelia: 
O Mother, why? 

Mother: 
You must help me with Hedwig. I can't man- 
age her alone. 

Amelia: 
Hedwig ! 



WAR BRIDES n 

Mother: 
She is strange; she broods. Hadn't you no- 
ticed? 

Amelia: 
Why, yes; but I thought she was worrying 
about Franz. She adores him, and any day she 
may hear that he is killed. It 's the waiting 
that 's so awful. 

Mother: 
But it 's more than the waiting with Hedwig. 
Aye, you will help Franz more by staying home 
to take care of his wife, Amelia, especially now. 

A m elia : [ Puzzled. ] 

Now? 

Mother: 

[Goes to her work-basket.] 

Hedwig has told you nothing? 

Amelia: 

No. 



12 WAR BRIDES 

Mother: 
Ah, she is a strange girl ! She asked me to keep 
it a secret, — I don't know why, — but now I 
think you should know. See! 

[Very proudly she holds up the tiny baby 
garments she is knitting.} 

Amelia: 
[Pleased and astonished.} 
So Franz and Hedwig — 

Mother: [Nods.] 

For their child. In six months now. My first 
grandchild, Amelia. Franz's boy, perhaps. I 
shall hear a little one's voice in this house again. 

Amelia: 
[ Uncertainly, as she looks at the 
little things.] 
Still — I want to go. 



WAR BRIDES 13 

Mother: [Firmly.'] 

We must take care of Hedwig, Amelia. She 
is to be a mother. That is our first duty. It 
is our only hope of an heir if you won't marry 
soon — and if — if the boys don't come back. 

Amelia: 
Arno is left. 

Mother: 
Ah, but they '11 be calling him next. It is his 
birthday to-day, too, poor lad. He 's on the 
jump to be off. I see him gone, too. God 
knows I may never see one of them again. I 
sit here in the long evenings and think how 
death may take my boys, — even this minute 
they may be breathing their last, — and then I 
knit this baby sock and think of the precious 
little life that 's coming. It 's my one comfort, 
Amelia. Nothing must happen now. 



14 WAR BRIDES 

Amelia: 
[With a touch of impatience, .] 
What 's the matter with Hedwig? 

Mother: 
I don't know what it is. She acts as if she 
did n't want to bring her child into the world. 
She talks wild. I tell you I must have that 
child, Amelia! I cannot live else. Hedwig 
frightens me. The other night I found her sit- 
ting on the edge of her bed staring, — when she 
should have been asleep, — as if she saw visions, 
and whispering, "I will send a message to the 
emperor." What message? I had to shake 
her out of it. She refuses to make a thing for 
her baby. Says, "Wait till I see what they do 
to Franz." It 's unnatural. 

Amelia: 
I can't understand her. I never could. I al- 



WAR BRIDES 15 

ways thought it was because she was a factory- 
town girl. 

Mother: 
If anything should happen to Franz in the 
state she 's in now, Hedwig might go out of her 
mind entirely. So you had best stay by, 
Amelia. We must keep a close eye on her. 

[There is a knock at the door.] 
Who's that? 

Amelia: 
[Looks out of the windows, and 
then whispers.] 
It 's Hans Hoffman. 

[The knock is repeated.] 

Mother: 
Open, girl! Don't stand there! 
[Enter Hoffman, gay, familiar, inclined to 



16 WAR BRIDES 

stoutness, but good-looking. Accustomed to 
having the women bow down to him.] 

Hoffman : 
[To Amelia.] Ah, ha! You gave mc the 
slip yesterday! 

Amelia: 
My mother. 

Hoffman: [Nodding.] 

Good day, Mother. [She curtsies.] 

[Coming closer to Amelia.] 
Where did you run to? Here she as good as 
promised me she would wed me to-day, Mother, 
and then — 

Amelia: 
Oh, no! 

Hoffman: 

Yes, you did. You let me kiss you. 

Amelia: [Taken aback.] 
Oh, sir! 



WAR BRIDES 17 

Hoffman : 
And when I got to the church square to-day, no 
bride for Hans Hoffman. Well, I must say, 
they had the laugh on me ; for I had told them 
I had found the girl for me — the prettiest bride 
of the lot. But to-morrow — 

Amelia: 
I can't. 

Hoffman : 

[Taking hold of her.] 
Oh, yes, you can. I won't bother you long. 
I 'm off to the front any day now. Come, 
promise me! What do you say, Mother? 

Mother: [Slowly.] 

I should like to see her wed. 

Hoffman: 
There ! 



18 WAR BRIDES 

Amelia: 
{Shrinking from both him and the idea.] 
But I don't know you well enough yet. 

Hoffman: 
Well, look me over. Don't you think I am 
good enough for her, Mother? Besides, we 
can't stop to think of such things now, 
Amelia. It is war-time. This is an emer- 
gency measure. And, then, I 'm a soldier — like 
to die for my country. That ought to count 
for something — a good deal, I should say — if 
you love your country, and you do, don't you, 
Amelia? 

Amelia: 
Oh, yes! 

Hoffman: 
Well, then, we can get married and get ac- 
quainted afterward. 



WAR BRIDES 19 

Amelia : [Family. ] 

I wanted to be a nurse. 

Hoffman : 

Nonsense ! Pretty girls like you should marry. 
The priests and the generals have commanded 
it. It 's for the fatherland. Ought she not 
to wed me, Mother? 

Mother: 

[Nodding impersonally.] 
Aye, it is for the fatherland they ask it. 

Hoffman : 

Of course. It is your patriotic duty, Amelia. 
You 're funny. All the young women are 
tickled at the chance. But you are the one I 
have picked out, and I am going to have you. 
Now, there 's a good girl — promise ! 

[A hubbub of voices and a cheer are heard out- 



20 WAR BRIDES 

side. Enter Minna, flushed, pretty, light 
headed. ] 

Amelia: 
Minna ! 

Minna: 

[Holding out her hand.] 

Amelia, see! My wedding-ring! 

Amelia: 
Iron! 

Minna : [ Triumphantly. ] 

Yes ; a war bride ! 

Amelia: 
You? 

Minna: 

That's what I am. [Whirling gaily about. \ 

Hoffman : 

[Shaking her hand.] 
Good for you ! Congratulations ! 



WAR BRIDES 21 

Minna: 
Didn't you hear them cheer? That was for 



me! 



Hoffman : 
There 5 s patriotism for you, Amelia! 

Amelia: 
When were you married, Minna? 

Minna: 
Just now. There were ten of us. We all an- 
swered in chorus. It was fun — just like a the- 
ater. Then the priest made a speech, and the 
burgomaster and the captain. The people 
cheered, and then our husbands had to go to 
drill for an hour. Oh, I never was so thrilled ! 
It was grand! They told us we were the true 
patriots. 

Hoffman: 
Hurrah ! And so you are. 



22 WAR BRIDES 

Minna: 

Our names will go down in history, honored by 

a whole people, they said. 

[They are all carried away by Minna's enthusi- 
asm; even Amelia warms up.] 

Amelia: 
But whom did you marry, Minna? 



Heinrich Berg. 



Minna: 

Amelia: [Dubious.] 



That loafer! 

Minna: 
He 's all right. He 's a soldier now. Why, 
he may be a hero, fighting for the fatherland; 
and that makes a lot of difference, Amelia. 

Hoffman: 
What did I tell you? 



WAR BRIDES 23 

Minna: 

I probably would n't have picked him out in 
peace-times, but it is different now. He only 
asked me last night. Of course he may get 
killed. They said we 'd have a widow's pen- 
sion fund, — us and our children, — forever and 
ever, if the boys didn't come back. So, you 
see, I won't be out anything. Anyway, it 's for 
the country. We '11 be famous, as war brides. 
Even the name sounds glorious, does n't it? 
War bride ! Is n't that fine? 

Hoffman : 
Here 's a little lady who will hear herself 
called that to-morrow. [Takes Amelia's 
hand.] 

Minna: 

[Clapping her hands.} 
Amelia a war bride, too! Good! 



24 WAR BRIDES 

Hoffman : 

You '11 be proud to hear her called that, won't 
you, Mother? Give us your blessing. 

Minna: 
I 'd rather be a wife or a widow any day 
than be an old maid; and to be a war bride — 
oh! 

[Amelia is blushing and tremulous.] 

Mother: 

[ With a far-away look.] 
It is for the fatherland, Amelia. Aye, aye, the 
masters have said so. It is the will and judg- 
ment of those higher than us. They are wise. 
Our country will need children. Aye. Say 
yes, my daughter. You will not say no when 
your country bids you! It is your emperor, 
your country, who asks, more than Hans Hoff- 
man. 



WAR BRIDES 25 

Amelia: 
[Impressed, and questions her- 
self to see if her patriotism is 
strong enough to stand the test, 
while Hoffman, charmed by 
Amelia's gentleness, is moved by 
more personal feeling.] 

Hoffman : 

[Kissing Amelia on both cheeks.] 
There, it 's all settled. [A faint cheer is heard 
without.] To-morrow they will cheer you like 
that; and when I go, I shall have a bride to 
wave me good-by instead of — 

[Enter Hedwig. 

She stands in the doorway, looking out on the 
distant crowds. She is tall, well built, and 
carries herself proudly. Strong, intelligent 
features, but pale. Her eyes are large with 



26 WAR BRIDES 

anxiety. She has soft, wavy black hair. An 
inward flame seems to be consuming her. 
The sounds continue in the distance, cheering, 
disputing mingled with far bugle-calls and 
marching feet.] 

Hedwig: 

[ Contemptuously. ] 
Ha! 

[The sound startles the others. They turn.] 

All: 
Hedwig ! 

Hedwig: 

[Still in the doorway, looking out.] 
War brides ! 

Minna : [ "Pertly. ] 

You 're a war bride yourself, Hedwig. 



WAR BRIDES 27 

Hedwig: 

[Turns quickly ; locates Minna, 
almost springs at her.] 

Don't you dare to call me a war bride! My 
ring is gold. See. [Seizes Minna's hand, and 
then throws it from her.] Not iron, like yours. 

Minna: 

[Boldly taunting.] 
They even call you the first war bride. 

Hedwig: 

[Furious, towering over her, her 
hand on her shoulder.] 
Say why, why? 

Minna : [ Weakening. ] 

Because you were the first one to be married 
when the war broke out. 



28 WAR BRIDES 

Hedwig: 
{Both hands on her shoulders. \ 
Because the Government commanded? Because 
they bribed me with the promise of a widow's 
pension? Tell the truth. 

Minna : [ Family. ] 

No. Let me go. 

Hedwig: 
So ! And how long had Franz and I been en- 
gaged*? Now say. 

Minna: 
[Beginning to be frightened.} 
Two years. 

Hedwig: 

[Flinging her off.} 
Of course. Everybody knows it. Every vil- 
lage this side the river knew we were to be mar- 
ried this summer. We 've dreamed and worked 



WAR BRIDES 29 

for nothing else all these months. It had noth- 
ing to do with the war — our love, our marriage. 
So, you see, I am no war bride. [ Walks scorn- 
fully away.] Not like you, anyway. 

[They all stare at her.] 

Hoffman : 
[Stepping forward indignantly.] 
I don't know why you should have this con- 
tempt for our war brides, and speak like that. 

Hedwig: 
[Sits down, half turned away. 
She shrugs her shoulders, and 
her lips curl in a little smile.] 

Hoffman : 
They are coming to the rescue of their country. 
Saving it; else it will perish. 

Hedwig : [ B itterly . ] 

Ha! 



30 WAR BRIDES 

Hoffman : 

[ Waxing warmer.] 
They are the saviors of the future. 

Hedwig : [ Sadly. ] 

The future! 

Mother: 
[Softly, laying her hand on 
Hedwig' s shoulder. ] 
Hedwig, be more respectful. Herr Hoffman 
is a lieutenant. 

Hoffman: 
When we are gone, — the best of us, — what will 
the country do if it has no children? 

Hedwig: 
Why did n't you think of that before — before 
you started this wicked war? 

Hoffman : 
I tell you it is a glory to be a war bride. There ! 



WAR BRIDES 31 

Hedwig: [With a shrug.] 
A breeding-machine! [They all draw back.] 
Why not call it what it is? Speak the naked 
truth for once. 

Hoffman : 
You '11 take that back to-morrow, when your sis- 
ter stands up in the church with me. 

Hedwig: [Starting up.] 
Amelia? Marry you? No! Amelia, is this 
true? 

Amelia: 
[Hesitating, troubled, and uncertain.] 
They tell me I must — for the fatherland. 

Hedwig: 
Marry this man, whom you scarcely know, 
whom surely you cannot love ! Why, you make 
a mock of marriage ! It is n't that they have 
tempted you with the widow's pension? It is 



32 WAR BRIDES 

so tiny ; it 's next to nothing. Surety you 
wouldn't yield to that? 

A m elia : [ Frightened. ] 

I did want to go as a nurse, but the priests and 
the generals — they say we must marry — to — 
for the fatherland, Hedwig. 

Hoffman: [To Hedwig.] 
I command you to be silent ! 

Hedwig: 
Not when my sister's happiness is at stake. If 
you come back, she will have to live with you 
the rest of her life. 

Hoffman: 
That is n't the question now. We are going 
away — the best of us — to be shot, most likely. 
Don't you suppose we want to send some part 
of ourselves into the future, since we can't live 



WAR BRIDES 33 

ourselves? There, that's straight; and right, 
too. 

Hedwig: 

{Nodding slowly.] 
What I said — to breed a soldier for the empire ; 
to restock the land. [Fiercely.] And for 
what? For food for the next generation's can- 
non. Oh, it is an insult to our womanhood! 
You violate all that makes marriage sacred! 
[Agitated, she walks about the room.] Are we 
women never to get up out of the dust? You 
never asked us if we wanted this war, yet you 
ask us to gather in the crops, cut the wood, keep 
the world going, drudge and slave, and wait, 
and agonize, lose our all, and go on bearing 
more men — and more— to be shot down! If 
we breed the men for you, why don't you let us 
say what is to become of them? Do we want 
them shot — the very breath of our life? 



34 WAR BRIDES 

Hoffman : 
It is for the fatherland. 

Hedwig: 
You use us, and use us — dolls, beasts of bur- 
den, and you expect us to bear it forever 
dumbly; but I won't! I shall cry out till I die. 
And now you say it almost out loud, "Go and 
breed for the empire." War brides ! Pah ! 
[Minna gasps, beginning to be terrified. Hoff- 
man rages. Mother gazes with anxious con- 
cern. Amelia turns pale.] 

Hoffman : 
I never would dream of speaking of Amelia like 
that. She is the sweetest girl I have seen for 
many a day. 

Hedwig: 
What will happen to Amelia? Have you 
thought of that? No; I warrant you have n't. 



WAR BRIDES 35 

Well, look. A few kisses and sweet words, the 
excitement of the ceremony, the cheers of the 
crowd, some days of living together, — I won't 
call it marriage, for Franz and I are the ones 
who know what real marriage is, and how sacred 
it is, — then what*? Before you know it, an 
order to march. Amelia left to wait for her 
child. No husband to wait with her, to watch 
over her. Think of her anxiety, if she learns 
to love you! What kind of child will it be*? 
Look at me. What kind of child would / 
have, do you think? I can hardly breathe for 
thinking of my Franz, waiting, never knowing 
from minute to minute. From the way I feel, 
I should think my child would be born mad, 
I 'm that wild with worrying. And then for 
Amelia to go through the agony alone! No 
husband to help her through the terrible hour. 
What solace can the state give then? And 



36 WAR BRIDES 

after that, if you don't come back, who is going 
to earn the bread for her child? Struggle and 
struggle to feed herself and her child; and the 
fine-sounding name you trick us with — war 
bride! Humph! that will all be forgotten 
then. Only one thing can make it worth while, 
and do you know what that is"? Love. We '11 
struggle through fire and water for that; but 
without it — [Gesture.] 

Hoffman: 
[Drawing Amelia to him.] 
Don't listen to her, Amelia. 

Amelia: 

[Pushing Hoffman violently 
from her, runs from the room.] 

No, no, I can't marry you! I won't! I 

won't ! 

[She shuts the door in his face.] 



WAR BRIDES 37 

Hedwig: 

[Triumphantly .] 
She will never be your war bride, Hans Hoff- 
man! 

Hoffman : 

[Suddenly, angrily.] 
By thunder ! I 've made a discovery. You 're 
the woman ! You 're the woman ! 

Hedwig: 
What woman? 

Hoffman : 
Yesterday there were twenty war brides. The 
day before there were nearly thirty. To-day 
there were only ten. There are rumors — 
[Excitedly.'] I'll report you. They'll find 
you guilty. I myself can prove it. 

Hedwig: 
Well? 



38 WAR BRIDES 

Hoffman : 
I heard them say at the barracks that some one 
was talking the women out of marrying. They 
did n't know who; but they said if they caught 
her — caught any one talking as you have just 
now, daring to question the wisdom of the em- 
peror and his generals, the church, too, — she 'd 
be guilty of treason. You are working against 
the emperor, against the fatherland. Here you 
have done it right before my very eyes; you 
have taken Amelia right out of my arms. 
You 're the woman who 's been upsetting the 
others, and don't you deny it. 

Hedwig: 
Deny it*? I am proud of it. 

Hoffman : 
Then the place for you is in jail. Do you 
know what will be the end of you *? 



WAR BRIDES 39 

Hedwig: 

[Suddenly far away.] 
Yes, I know, if Franz does not come back. I 
know; but first [Clenching her hands] I must 
get my message to the emperor. 

Hoffman : [ Very angry. ] 
You will be shot for treason. 

Hedwig: 
[Coming back, laughing slightly.] 
Shot? Oh, no, Herr Hans, you 'd never shoot 
me! 

Hoffman : 
Why not? 

Hedwig: 
Do I have to tell you, stupid? I am a woman : 
I can get in the crops; I can keep the country 
going while you are away fighting, and, most 
important, I might give you a soldier for your 



40 WAR BRIDES 

next army — for the kingdom. Don't you see 
my value"? [Laughs strangely.] Oh, no, 
you 'd never shoot me ! 

Mother: 
There, there, don't excite her, sir. 

Hedwig: 
[Her head in her hands, on the table.] 
God! I wish you would shoot me! If you 
don't give me back my Franz ! I 've no mind 
to bring a son into the world for this bloody 
thing you call war. - 

Hoffman: 
I am going straight to headquarters to report 
you. 

[Starts to go. 

Enter Arno excitedly. He is boyish and fair, 

in his early twenties, and looks even younger 

than he really is.] 



WAR BRIDES 41 

Arno: [To Hoffman.'] 

There 's an order to march at once — your regi- 
ment. 

Hoffman : 
Now? 

Arno: 
At once. You are wanted. They told me to 
tell you. 

[Hoffman moves with military precision to the 
door; then turns to Hedzvig.] 

Hoffman : 
I shall take the time to report you. 
[Goes.] 

Minna: [To Arno.] 

Does Heinrich's regiment go, too? 

Arno: 
Heinrich who? 

Minna: 
Heinrich Berg, 



42 WAR BRIDES 

Arno: 
No. To-morrow. 

[Minna, now thoroughly scared, is slinking to 
the door when Hedwig stops her.] 

Hedwig: 
Ha! little Minna, why do you run so fast? 
Heinrich does not go until to-morrow. [Looks 
at her thoughtfully.] Are you going to be able 
to fight it through, little Minna, when the hard 
days come? If you do give the empire a sol- 
dier, will it be any comfort to know you are 
helping the falling birth-rate? 

Minna : [ Shivering. ] 

Oh, I am afraid of you ! 

Hedwig: 
Afraid of the truth, you mean. You see it 
at last in all its brutal bareness. Poor little 
Minna! [She puts her arm around Minna 



> 

O 




WAR BRIDES 43 

with sudden tenderness.] But you need not 
be afraid of me, little Minna. Oh, no. The 
trouble with me is I want no more war. Franz 
is at the war. I 'm half mad with dreaming 
they have killed him. Any moment I may 
hear. If you loved your man as I do mine, 
little Minna, you 'd understand. Well, go 
now, and to-morrow say good-by to your hus- 
band — of a day. 
[Minna, with a frightened backward glance, 

runs out the door. 
Arno, who has been talking in low tones to his 

mother, now rises.] 

Arno: 
Well, Mother, I have n't much time. 
[She clings to his hand.] 

Hedwig : [ Starting. ] 

Arno! 



44 WAR BRIDES 

Arno: 
I am going, too. Get those little things for 
me, Mother, will you? 

Mother: 

[Goes to door and calls.] 
Amelia! Come. Arno has been called. 
[Amelia comes in. Each in turn embraces him, 
sadly, but bravely. Then the mother and 
sister gather together handkerchiefs, linen, 
writing-pad and pencil, and small neces- 
saries. ] 

Arno: 
I have only a few minutes. 

Hedwig : [ Tenderly. ] 

Arno, my little brother, oh, why — why must 
you go? You seem so young. 

Arno: 
I 'm a man, like the others; don't forget 



WAR BRIDES 45 

that, Hedwig. Be brave — to help me to be 

brave. 

[They sit on the settle.] 

Hedwig: 

[Sighing.] 

Yes, it cannot be helped. Will you see my 
Franz, Arno*? You look so like him to-day — 
the day I first saw him in the fields, the day of 
the factory picnic. It seems long ago. Tell 
him how happy he made me, and how I loved 
him. He did n't believe in this war no more 
than I, yet he had to go. He dreaded lest he 
meet his friends on the other side. You re- 
member those two young men from across the 
border? They worked all one winter side by 
side in the factory with Franz. They went 
home to join their regiments when the war was 
let loose on us. He never could stand it, 
Franz could n't, if he were ordered to drive 



46 WAR BRIDES 

his bayonet into them. [Gets up, full of emo- 
tion that is past expression.} Oh, it is too 
monstrous! And for what — for what*? 

Arno: 

It is our duty. We belong to the fatherland. 
I would willingly give my life for my country. 

Hedwig: 
I would willingly give mine for peace. 

Arno: 
I must go. Good-by, Hedwig. 

Hedwig: 

[Controlling her emotion as she kisses him.\ 
Good-by, my brave, splendid little brother. 

Amelia: 
I may come to the front, too. 
[They embrace tenderly. ~\ 



WAR BRIDES 47 

Mother: 
[Strong and quiet, unable to 
speak, holds his head against her 
breast for a moment. \ 
Fight well, my son. 

Arno: 

Yes, Mother. 

[He tears himself away. The silent suffering 
of the mother is pitiful. Her hands are 
crossed on her breast, her lips are seen to 
move in prayer. It is Hedwig who takes her 
in her arms and comforts her.] 

Hedwig: 
And this is war — to tear our hearts out like 
this! Make mother some tea, Amelia, can't 
you 1 ? 

[Amelia prepares the cup of tea for her 
mother.] 



48 WAR BRIDES 

Mother: 
[After a few mornents composes herself .\ 
There, I am right now. I must remember — 
and you must help me, my daughters — it is for 
the fatherland. 

Hedwig: 

[On her knees by the fire, shakes 

her head slowly.'] 
I wonder, I wonder. O Mother, I 'm not pa- 
tient like you. I could n't stand it. To have 
a darling little baby and see him grow into a 
man, and then lose him like this ! I 'd rather 
never see the face of my child. 

Mother: 
We have them for a little while. I am thank- 
ful to God for what I have had. 

Hedwig: 
Then I must be very wicked. 



WAR BRIDES 49 

Mother: 
Are you sleeping better now, child'? 

Hedwig: 

No ; I am thinking of Franz. He may be lying 
there alone on the battle-field, with none to 
help, and I here longing to put my arms around 
him. 

[Buries her face on the mother's knees and 
sobs.] 

Mother: 
Hush, Hedwig! Be brave! Take care of 
yourself! We must see that Franz's child is 
well born. 

Hedwig: 

If Franz returns, yes; if not — I — 
[Gets up impulsively ', as if to run out of the 
house, ,] 



So WAR BRIDES 

Amelia: 

Don't you want your tea, Hedwig*? 

[Hedwig throws open the door, and suddenly 
confronts a man who apparently was about 
to enter the house. He is an official, the 
military head of the town, known as Cap- 
tain Hertz. He is well along in years, 
rhemnatic, but tremendously self-impor- 
tant.] 

Hertz: 

[Stopping Hedwig.] 
Wait one moment. You are the young woman 
I wish to see. You don't get away from me 
like that. 

Hedwig: 

[Drawing herself up, moves 
back a step or two.] 
What is it? 



WAR BRIDES 51 

Hertz: 
[Turning to the old mother.'] 
Well, Maria, another son must go — Arno. 
You are an honored woman, a noble example to 
the state. [Turns to Amelia.'] You have lost 
a very good husband, I understand. Well, 
you are a foolish girl. As for you [Turning 
to Hedwig, and eyeing her critically and se- 
verely]^ I hear pretty bad things. Yes, you 
have been talking to the women — telling them 
not to marry, not to multiply. In so doing 
you are working directly against the Govern- 
ment. It is the express request and command 
that our soldiers about to be called to the front 
and our young women should marry. You de- 
liberately set yourself in opposition to that com- 
mand. Are you aware that that is treason? 

Hedwig: 
Why are they asking this, Herr Captain? 



52 WAR BRIDES 

Hertz : 
Our statesmen are wise. They are thinking of 
the future state. The nation is fast being de- 
populated. We must take precautionary 
measures. We must have men for the future. 
I warn you, that to do or say anything which 
subverts the plan of the empire for its own 
welfare, especially at a time when our national 
existence is in peril — well, it is treason. Were it 
not that you are the daughter-in-law of my old 
friend [Indicating the Mother], I should not 
take the trouble to warn you, but pack you off 
to jail at once. Not another word from you, 
you understand? 

Hedwig: 

[Calmly, even sweetly, but with 

fire in her eye.] 
If I say I will keep quiet, will you promise me 
something in return? 



WAR BRIDES 53 

Hertz : 
What do you mean? Quiet? Of course 
you '11 keep quiet. Quiet as a tombstone, if 
I have anything to say about it. 

Hedwig: 

[Calm and tense.] 
I mean what I say. Promise to see to it that 
if we bear you the men for your nation, there 
shall be no more war. See to it that they shall 
not go forth to murder and be murdered. That 
is fair. We will do our part, — we always 
have, — will you do yours? Promise. 

Hertz: 
I — I — ridiculous! There will always be war. 

Hedwig: 
Then one day we will stop giving you men. 
Look at mother. Four sons torn from her in 



54 WAR BRIDES 

one month, and none of you ever asked her if 
she wanted war. You keep us here helpless. 
We don't want dreadnoughts and armies and 
fighting, we women. You tear our husbands, 
our sons, from us, — you never ask us to help 
you find a better way, — and have n't we any- 
thing to say? 

Hertz: 
No. War is man's business. 

Hedwig: 
Who gives you the men? We women. We 
bear and rear and agonize. Well, if we are 
fit for that, we are fit to have a voice in the 
fate of the men we bear. If we can bring forth 
the men for the nation, we can sit with you in 
your councils and shape the destiny of the na- 
tion, and say whether it is to war or peace we 
give the sons we bear. 



WAR BRIDES 5s 

Hertz: [Chuckling.] 

Sit in the councils'? That would be a joke. 
I see. Mother, she's a little — [Touches his 
forehead suggestively.} Sit in the councils 
with the men and shape the destiny of the na- 
tion! Ha! ha! 

Hedwig: 

Laugh, Herr Captain, but the day will come; 
and then there will be no more war. No, you 
will not always keep us here, dumb, silent 
drudges. We will find a way. 

Hertz: 
[Turning to the mother.] 
That is what comes of letting Franz go to a 
factory town, Maria. That is where he met 
this girl. Factory towns breed these ideas. 
[To Hedwig. ,] Well, we'll have none of 
that here. [Authoritatively.] Another word 



56 WAR BRIDES 

of this kind of insurrection, another word to 
the women of your treason, and you will be 
locked up and take your just punishment. 
You remember I had to look out for you in the 
beginning when you talked against this war. 
You 're a firebrand, and you know how we 
handle the like of you. [Goes to door, turns 
to the mother.] I am sorry you have to have 
this trouble, Maria, on top of everything else. 
You don't deserve it. [To Hedwig.] You 
have been warned. Look out for yourself. 
[Hedwig is standing rigid, with difficulty repress- 
ing the torrent of her feelings. Drums are heard 
coming nearer, and singing voices of men.] 

Amelia: [At door.] 

They are passing this way. 

Hedwig: 

Wave to Arno. Come, Mother. Ah, how 
quickly they go ! 



WAR BRIDES 57 

[The official steps out of the door. There is 
quick rhythm of marching feet as the depart- 
ing regiment passes not very far from the 
house.] 

There he is! Wave, Mother. Good-by! 

good-by ! 

[The women stand in the doorway, waving 
their sad farewells, smiling bravely. The 
sounds grow less and less, until there is the 
usual silence.} 

In another month, in another week, perhaps, 

all the men will be gone. We will be a village 

of women. Not a man left. 

[She leads the old mother into the house once 
more.] 

Hertz: [In the door.] 

What did you say? 



58 WAR BRIDES 

Hedwig: 
Not a man left, I said. 

Hertz: 
You forget. I shall be here. 

Hedwig: 
You are old. You don't count. They think 
you are only a woman, Herr Captain. 

Hertz: [Insulted.] 

You — you — 

Hedwig: 

Oh, don't take it badly, sir. You are hon- 
ored. Is the name of woman always to be 
despised? Look out in those fields. Who 
cleared them, and plucked the vineyards clean ? 
You think we are left at home because we are 
weak. Ah, no; we are strong. That is why. 
Strong to keep the world going, to keep sacred 
the greatest things in life — love and home and 



WAR BRIDES 59 

work. To remind men of — peace. [With a 
quick change.] If only you really were a 
woman, Herr Captain, that you might breed 
soldiers for the empire, your glory would be 
complete. 

[The old captain is about to make an angry 
reply when there is a commotion outside. 
The words "News from the front" are dis- 
tinguished, growing more distinct. The 
captain rushes out. The women are para- 
lyzed with apprehension for a moment, .] 

Mother: 

Amelia, go and see. Hedwig, come here. 

[Hedwig crouches on the floor close to the 
mother, her eyes wide with dread. In a few 
moments Amelia returns, dragging her feet, 
woe in her face, and unable to deal the blow 
which must fall on the two women, who stare 
at her with blanched faces.] 



60 WAR BRIDES 

Amelia: 
[Falling at her mother's knee.] 
Mother ! 



Which one*? 



All of them. 



Mother: 

[ Scarcely breathing. ] 

Amelia: 



Mother: [Dazed.] 

All? All my boys? 

Amelia: 

Emil, Otto — be thankful Arno is left. 

[The Mother drops her head back against the 
chair and silently prays. Hedwig creeps 
nearer Amelia and holds her face between 
her hands > looking into her eyes.] 



Franz? 



WAR BRIDES 61 

Hedwig: 

[Whispering.} 

Amelia: 

Franz, too. 

[Hedwig lies prostrate on the floor. Their 
grief is very silent; terrible because it is so 
dumb and stoical. The Mother is the first to 
rouse herself. She bends over Hedwig.} 

Mother: 

Hedwig. [Hedwig sobs convulsively.} 
Don't, child. Be careful for the little one's 
sake. [Hedwig sits up.} For your child be 
quiet, be brave. 

Hedwig: 
I loved him so, Mother! 

Mother: 
Yes, he was my boy — my first-born. 



62 WAR BRIDES 

Hedwig: 

Your first-born, and this is the end. 
[She rises up in unutterable wrath and de- 
spair. ] 
O God! 

Mother: 

[Anxious for her.] 
Promise me you will be careful, Hedwig. For 
the sake of your child, your first-born, that is 
to be — 

Hedwig: 
My child? For this end? For the empire — 
the war that is to be? No! 

Mother: 

[Half to herself.] 
He may look like Franz. 

[Hedwig quickly seizes the pistol from the 
mantel-shelf and moves to the bedroom door. 



WAR BRIDES 63 

Amelia, watching her, sees her do it, and 
cries out in alarm and rushes to take it from 
her.] 

Amelia: [In horror.] 

Hedwig! What are you doing ? Give it to 
me ! No, you must not ! You have too much 
to live for. 

Hedwig : [ Dazed. ] 

To live for? Me? 

Amelia: 
Why, yes, you are going to be a mother. 

Hedwig: 
A mother? Like her? [Looks sadly at the 
bereaved old mother.] Look at her! Poor 
Mother! And they never asked her if she 
wanted this thing to be! Oh, no! I shall 
never take it like that — never! But you are 
right, Amelia. I have something to do first. 



64 WAR BRIDES 

[Lets Amelia put the pistol away in the cup- 
board.] I must send a message to the emperor. 
[The others are more alarmed for her in this 

mood than in her grief.] 
You said you were going to the front to be a 
nurse, Amelia. Can you take this message for 
me'? I might take it myself, perhaps. 

Amelia: 

[Hesitating, not knowing what 
to say or do.] 
Let me give you some tea, Hedwig. 
[Voices are heard outside, and the sounds of 
sorrow. Some one near the house is weep- 
ing. A wild look and a fierce resolve light 
Hedwig' s face.] 

Hedwig: 

[Rushing from the house.] 
They have taken my Franz! 



WAR BRIDES 65 

Mother: 
Get her back! I feared it. Grief has made 
her mad. 

[Amelia runs out. A clamor of voices outside. 
Hedwig can be heard indistinctly speaking 
to the women. Finally her voice alone is 
heard \ and in a moment she appears ", backing 
into the doorway, still talking to the 
women.] 

Hedwig: 

[A tragic light in her face, and 

hand uplifted.] 
I shall send a message to the emperor. If ten 
thousand women send one like it, there will be 
peace and no more war. Then they will hear 
our tears. 

A Voice: 
What is the message"? Tell us! 



66 WAR BRIDES 

Hedwig: 
Soon you will know. [Loudly.] But I tell 
you now, don't bear any more children until 
they promise you there will be no more war. 

Hertz: 
[Suddenly appearing. Amelia follows.'] 
I heard you. I declare you under arrest. 
Come with me. You will be shot for trea- 
son. 

Mother: 

[Fearfully , drawing him aside.] 
Don't say that, sir. Wait. Oh, no, you can't 
do that! 

[She gets out her work-basket^ and shows him 
the baby things she has been knitting, and 
glances significantly at Hedwig. A horrid 
smile comes into the man's face. Hedwig> 
snatches the things and crushes them to her 
breast as if sacrilege had been committed. J 



> 

m 



2 
o 



O 

c 




WAR BRIDES 67 

Hertz: 
Is this true^ You expect — 

Hedwig: 

[Proudly, scornfully.} 
You will not shoot me if I give you a soldier 
for your empire and your armies and your guns, 
will you, Herr Captain *? 

Hertz: 
Why — eh, no. Every child counts these times. 
But we will put you under lock and key. You 
are a firebrand. I warned you. Come along. 

Hedwig: 

You want my child, but still you will not prom- 
ise me what I asked you. Well, we shall see. 

Hertz: 
Come along. 



68 WAR BRIDES 

Hedwig: 
Give me just a moment. I want to send a 
message to the emperor. Will you take it for 
me, Herr Captain? 

Mother: [ Signing. ] 

Humor her. 

Hertz: 
Well, well, hurry up! 

[Hedwig sits at table and writes a brief 
note.] 

Mother: [Whispering.] 
She has lost Franz. She is crazed. 

Hedwig : [R ising. ] 

There. See that it is placed in the hands of 
the emperor. [Gives him the note.] Good-by, 
Amelia! Never be a war bride, Amelia. 
[Kisses her three times ,] Good-by, Mother. 



WAR BRIDES 69 

[Embraces her tenderly.] Thank you for 

these. 

[She gathers the baby things in her hands, 
crosses the room, pressing a little sock to her 
lips. As she passes the cupboard she deftly 
seizes the pistol, and moves into the bed- 
room. On the threshold she looks over her 
shoulder.} 

Hedwig : [ Firmly. ] 

You may read the message out loud. 
[She disappears into the room, still pressing 
the little sock to her lips. 

Hertz: 

[Reading the note.] 
"A Message to the Emperor : I refuse to bear 
my child until you promise there shall be no 
more war." 



7 o WAR BRIDES 

[A shot is fired in the bedroom. They rush 
into the room. The Mother stands trem- 
bling by the table. \ 

Hertz: 
[Awed, coming out of the room 
with the baby things, which he 
places on the table. .] 
Dead ! Tcha ! tcha ! she was mad. I will hush 
it up, Maria. 

[He tears up Hedwig's message to the emperor, 
and goes out of the house, shaking his head. 
Amelia is kneeling in the doorway of the 
bedroom, bending over something, and softly 
crying. The Mother slowly gathers up the 
pieces of Hedwig's message and the baby 
garments, now dashed with blood, and, sit- 
ting on the bench, holds them tight against 
'her breast, staring straight in front of her, 



WAR BRIDES 71 

her lips moving inaudibly. She closes her 
eyes and rocks to and fro, still muttering and 
praying.] 



CURTAIN 



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